Wireless communications—dynamic coverage class update and aligning coverage class paging groups

ABSTRACT

Techniques are described herein that enhance the following: (1) how a wireless device conveys a change of its downlink (DL) coverage class (CC) to a network; and (2) how the network and the wireless device each perform a new paging group procedure to align coverage class paging groups within a given Extended Discontinuous Receive (eDRX) cycle for the wireless device. In addition, devices namely a wireless device, a radio access network node (e.g., Base Station Subsystem), and a core network node (e.g., Serving GPRS Support Node) that implement these techniques are described herein.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/973,586, filed on Dec. 17, 2015, which claims the benefit of priorityto U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/107,847, filed on Jan. 26, 2015.The entire contents of each of these applications are herebyincorporated by reference for all purposes.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to the wireless telecommunications fieldand, more particularly, to techniques for enhancing the following: (1)how a wireless device conveys a change of its downlink (DL) coverageclass (CC) to a network; and (2) how the network and the wireless deviceeach perform a new paging group procedure to align coverage class paginggroups within a given Extended Discontinuous Receive (eDRX) cycle forthe wireless device. In addition, the present disclosure relates todevices namely a wireless device, a radio access network node (e.g.,Base Station Subsystem), and a core network node (e.g., Serving GPRSSupport Node) that implement these techniques.

BACKGROUND

The following abbreviations and terms are herewith defined, at leastsome of which are referred to within the following description of thepresent disclosure.

3GPP 3rd-Generation Partnership Project

ACK Acknowledge

AGCH Access Grant Channel

ARQ Automatic Repeat Request

ASIC Application Specific Integrated Circuit

BLER Block Error Rate

BLKS Blocks

BSC Base Station Controller

BSS Base Station Subsystem

BSSGP Base Station Subsystem GPRS Protocol

BTS Base Transceiver Station

CC Coverage Class

CN Core Network

DL Downlink

DSP Digital Signal Processor

DRX Discontinuous Receive

eDRX Extended Discontinuous Receive

EC-GSM Extended Coverage-Global System for Mobile Communications

EC-PCH Extended Coverage Paging Channel

EC-SCH Extended Coverage Synchronization Channel

EDGE Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution

EGPRS Enhanced General Packet Radio Service

E-UTRA Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access

FCCH Frequency Correction Channel

GSM Global System for Mobile Communications

GERAN GSM/EDGE Radio Access Network

GPRS General Packet Radio Service

HARQ Hybrid ARQ

IE Information Element

IMSI International Mobile Subscriber Identity

IoT Internet of Things

IP Internet Protocol

LAN Local Area Network

LL Logical Link

LLGMM Logical Link GPRS Mobility Management

LLC Logical Link Control

LLSMS Logical Link Short Message Service

LTE Long-Term Evolution

MAC Media Access Control

MCS Modulation and Coding Scheme

MFRM Multiframe

MTC Machine Type Communications

NAS Non-Access Stratum

PCH Paging Channel

PDA Personal Digital Assistant

PDTCH Packet Data Traffic Channel

PDU Protocol Data Unit

PLMN Public Land Mobile Network

PSTN Public Switched Telephone Network

RACH Random Access Channel

RAM Random Access Memory

RAN Radio Access Network

RAT Radio Access Technology

RAU Routing Area Update

RBS Radio Base Station

RCC Radio Coverage Category

RLC Radio Link Control

RNC Radio Network Controller

ROM Read-Only Memory

RRC Radio Resource Control

SAPI Service Access Point Identifier

SCH Synchronization Channel

SGSN Serving GPRS Support Node

SMS Short Message Service

TBF Transport Block Format

TDMA Time Division Multiple Access

TLLI Temporary Logical Link Identifier

TOM Tunneling of Messages

TR Technical Report

TS Technical Specification

UE User Equipment

UL Uplink

VoIP Voice over Internet Protocol

WAN Wide Area Network

WCDMA Wideband Code Division Multiple Access

WiMAX Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access

WLAN Wireless Local Area Network

Coverage Class: At any point in time a device belongs to a specificuplink/downlink coverage class that corresponds to either the legacyradio interface performance attributes that serve as the referencecoverage for legacy cell planning (e.g., a Block Error Rate of 10% aftera single radio block transmission on the PDTCH) or a range of degradedradio interface performance attributes compared to the referencecoverage (e.g., up to 4 dB lower performance than that of the referencecoverage). Coverage class determines the total number of blindrepetitions to be used when transmitting/receiving radio blocks. Anuplink/downlink coverage class applicable at any point in time candiffer between different logical channels. Upon initiating a systemaccess a device determines the uplink/downlink coverage class applicableto the RACH/AGCH based on estimating the number of blind repetitions ofa radio block needed by the BSS receiver/device receiver to experience aBLER (block error rate) of approximately 10%. The BSS determines theuplink/downlink coverage class to be used by a device on the device'sassigned packet channel resources based on estimating the number ofblind repetitions of a radio block needed to satisfy a target BLER andconsidering the number of HARQ retransmissions (of a radio block) thatwill, on average, result from using that target BLER.Note: a device operating with radio interface performance attributescorresponding to the reference coverage is considered to be in the bestcoverage class (i.e., coverage class 1) and therefore does not makeblind repetitions.eDRX cycle: eDiscontinuous reception (eDRX) is a process of a wirelessdevice disabling its ability to receive when it does not expect toreceive incoming messages and enabling its ability to receive during aperiod of reachability when it anticipates the possibility of messagereception. For eDRX to operate, the network coordinates with thewireless device regarding when instances of reachability are to occur.The wireless device will therefore wake-up and enable message receptiononly during pre-scheduled periods of reachability. This process reducesthe power consumption which extends the battery life of the wirelessdevice and is sometimes called sleep mode.Extended Coverage: The general principle of extended coverage is that ofusing blind repetitions for the control channels and for the datachannels. In addition, for the data channels the use of blindrepetitions assuming MCS-1 (i.e., the lowest MCS supported in EGPRStoday) is combined with HARQ retransmissions to realize the needed levelof data transmission performance. Support for extended coverage isrealized by defining different coverage classes. A different number ofblind repetitions are associated with each of the coverage classeswherein extended coverage is associated with coverage classes for whichone or more blind repetitions are needed (i.e., an initial transmissionwithout any subsequent blind repetitions is considered as the referencecoverage). The number of total blind repetitions for a given coverageclass (except coverage class 1) can differ between different logicalchannels. Note: a wireless device using coverage class 1 on the uplinkonly transmits a single instance of a radio block it sends on any givenlogical channel (i.e., no blind repetitions are needed). Similarly, awireless device using coverage class 1 on the downlink is only sent asingle instance of a radio block on any given logical channel (i.e., noblind repetitions are needed).Nominal Paging Group: The specific set of EC-PCH blocks a devicemonitors once per eDRX cycle. The device determines this specific set ofEC-PCH blocks using an algorithm that takes into account its IMSI, itseDRX cycle length and its downlink coverage class.

The anticipated ubiquitous deployment of wireless devices used for whatis known as Machine-Type-Communication (MTC) will result in wirelessdevices being placed outside the typical radio coverage of the existingradio networks, e.g., in basements and similar locations. One way toimprove the radio coverage is by expanding the radio access networkinfrastructure, such as by adding additional Radio Base Station (RBS)equipment. This, however, may very quickly result in an unreasonableinvestment effort and may not be acceptable to operators.

An alternative approach to adding additional equipment is to keep theexisting radio access network infrastructure unchanged but insteadimprove the radio coverage through novel radio transmission andreception techniques as well as new Radio Resource Managementalgorithms. The alternative approach is currently being discussed in thewireless industry and is a subject for a standardization effort, forexample, in the 3rd-Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) as describedin the 3GPP TR 36.824 V11.0.0 Technical Report, entitled “EvolvedUniversal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA); LTE coverage enhancements”and the 3GPP TSG-GERAN Meeting #62 Work Item Description GP-140421,entitled “New Study Item on Cellular System Support for Ultra LowComplexity and Low Throughput Internet of Things.” The contents of thesetwo documents are hereby incorporated herein by reference for allpurposes.

While there are many techniques that can be used to enhance the radiocoverage as discussed above, one technique that is of particularinterest in the present disclosure is to enhance the radio coveragethrough the use of repeated transmissions (blind repetitions) based oncoverage classes (CCs). The repeated transmissions technique iscurrently being considered in the context of the standardization work in3GPP TSG RAN, as described in the above-referenced 3GPP TR 36.824V11.0.0 Technical Report, entitled “Evolved Universal Terrestrial RadioAccess (E-UTRA); LTE coverage enhancements” as well as in 3GPP TR 45.820V1.3.0 Technical Report, entitled “Cellular System Support for Ultra LowComplexity and Low Throughput Internet of Things”. The contents of thesetwo documents are hereby incorporated herein by reference for allpurposes.

As also described in 3GPP TSG-GERAN Meeting #63 Tdoc GP-140605, entitled“GSM Evolution for cellular IoT—PCH Overview” (the contents of which areincorporated herein by reference), wireless devices (e.g., those usedfor machine type communications (MTC)) can operate using differentcoverage classes and can be expected to make use of different extendeddiscontinuous receive (eDRX) cycles ranging from minutes to hours oreven days depending on the frequency of reachability desired for suchwireless devices. As such, these wireless devices can transmitinformation to the radio access network (RAN) regarding their current(i.e., currently estimated) coverage class and eDRX cycle length withinRadio Resources Control (RRC) or Non-Access Stratum (NAS) messages(e.g., GPRS Attach or Routing Area Update messages), thereby allowingthe RAN node (e.g., BSS) or the Core Network node (e.g., SGSN) todetermine the current coverage class and the periodicity with which thewireless devices will wake-up to look for a page according to theirnominal paging group associated within their current coverage class andeDRX cycle. The total number of paging resources (paging blocks) perdesired eDRX cycle can be determined based on coverage class, since eachcoverage class will need a different number of Paging Channel (PCH)block repetitions within the context of a single paging group. Forexample, considering a wireless communication network wherein a single51-multiframe supports 8 PCH blocks, it can be the case where thedesired eDRX cycle Y=256 51-multiframes ≈60 seconds (e.g., exactly 208of these DRX cycles will occur within the overall TDMA Frame Number (FN)space of 2715648 TDMA frames). Accordingly, the number of paging groupssupported within eDRX cycle Y can be determined by the coverage class ofa wireless device that operates using that eDRX cycle as follows:

-   -   PCH blocks per eDRX cycle =PB_DRX_CYCLE=256×8=2048.    -   Coverage Class 1: Paging groups per eDRX cycle        Y=PB_DRX_CYCLE=2048    -   Coverage Class 2: Paging groups per eDRX cycle Y=PB_DRX_CYCLE        div 2=1024    -   Coverage Class 3: Paging groups per eDRX cycle Y=PB_DRX_CYCLE        div 4=512    -   Coverage Class 4: Paging groups per eDRX cycle Y=PB_DRX_CYCLE        div 8=256    -   Coverage Class 5: Paging groups per eDRX cycle Y=PB_DRX_CYCLE        div 16=128

In view of the existing solutions, there are still problems associatedwith the repeated transmissions technique based on coverage classes.First of all, there is in principal no procedure available for awireless device (e.g., EC-GSM device) to convey a change of its coverageclass to the network (e.g., SGSN) other than via a Routing Area UpdateProcedure, which is very signalling intensive and is as such notsuitable for wireless devices targeting a 10 year battery life time.Further, since the Routing Area Update procedure is very signallingintensive it adds signalling load to both the radio network interfacesand the core network interfaces. Second, the current proposals for thenetwork (e.g., RAN node, BSS) to manage the paging groups for wirelessdevices are not optimized to handle a change in the DL CC just prior tothe next occurrence of the nominal paging group for a given wirelessdevice. These problems are discussed in more detail as follows:

-   -   If the SGSN (network) is informed of the new DL CC shortly        before the next occurrence of the nominal paging group based on        the old DL CC and this results in a new nominal paging group        that occurs well into the future compared to its old nominal        paging group (e.g., 20 minutes), then this can effectively        result in an excessively deferred paging opportunity.    -   If a wireless device determines its paging group based on the        current procedure, by mod(IMSI,N), where N is the number of        paging groups within the eDRX cycle and the result of the        operation is the paging block(s) to be monitored by the wireless        device, then the nominal paging group for a given coverage class        can occur uncorrelated from the nominal paging group associated        with another coverage class, within the same eDRX cycle.    -   In FIG. 1 (PRIOR ART) there is an illustration showing the        current paging group procedure and the problem associated        therewith within the context of four 51 multiframes 102 a, 102        b, 102 c and 102 d (around 1 second) where the difference        between nominal paging groups (see patterned boxes) for        different coverage classes namely CC1, CC2, CC3, CC4, CC5 and        CC6 for the same wireless device could be as long as the full        eDRX cycle (several minutes). This implies that the reachability        pattern of the wireless device can be substantially impacted by        changing the DL CC while maintaining the same eDRX cycle length.

These problems and other problems associated with the state-of-the-artare addressed by the present disclosure.

SUMMARY

A wireless device, a RAN node, a CN node, and various methods foraddressing at least the aforementioned problems are described in theindependent claims. Advantageous embodiments of the wireless device, theRAN node, the CN node, and the various methods are further described inthe dependent claims.

In one aspect, the present disclosure provides a wireless deviceconfigured to communicate with a CN node. The wireless device comprisesa processor and a memory that stores processor-executable instructions,wherein the processor interfaces with the memory to execute theprocessor-executable instructions, whereby the wireless device isoperable to perform a determine operation, and a transmit operation. Inthe determine operation, the wireless device determines a currentdownlink (DL) coverage class (CC) needs to be changed to a higher DL CCor a lower DL CC. In the transmit operation, the wireless device, basedon the determination of the need to change the current DL CC to thehigher DL CC, transmits an indication of the higher DL CC for the CNnode by performing a cell update procedure. The wireless deviceconfigured to implement the determine operation and the transmitoperation is advantageous since this provides a technique to convey achange of its coverage class to the network (e.g., SGSN) other than byusing a Routing Area Update Procedure which is very signalling intensiveand is as such not suitable for wireless devices targeting a 10 yearbattery life time.

In another aspect, the present disclosure provides a method in awireless device configured to communicate with a CN node. The methodcomprises a determining step, and a transmitting step. In thedetermining step, the wireless device determines a current downlink (DL)coverage class (CC) needs to be changed to a higher DL CC or a lower DLCC. In the transmitting step, the wireless device, based on thedetermination of the need to change the current DL CC to the higher DLCC, transmits an indication of the higher DL CC for the CN node byperforming a cell update procedure. The wireless device configured toimplement the determining step and the transmitting step is advantageoussince this provides a technique to convey a change of its coverage classto the network (e.g., SGSN) other than by using a Routing Area UpdateProcedure which is very signalling intensive and is as such not suitablefor wireless devices targeting a 10 year battery life time.

In yet another aspect, the present disclosure provides a RAN nodeconfigured to communicate with a wireless device. The RAN node comprisesa processor and at least one memory that stores processor-executableinstructions, wherein the processor interfaces with the at least onememory to execute the processor-executable instructions, whereby the RANnode is operable to perform a configuration operation. In theconfiguration operation, the RAN node configures a nominal paging groupfor a lowest coverage class (CC) within an extended DiscontinuousReceive (eDRX) cycle for the wireless device to correlate with anadditional nominal paging group associated with a higher CC within theeDRX cycle for the wireless device (note: the higher CC is a new CC ofthe wireless device). The RAN node typically performs this configurationoperation in response to receiving a paging request from the CN node andas such the new CC refers to the actual DL CC included within the pagingrequest (i.e., the new CC is also known as the DL CC currently stored bythe CN node for the wireless device and comprises the last DL CCinformation provided to the CN node by the wireless device). The RANnode by being configured to implement the configuration operation isadvantageous in that it substantially decreases the potential for missedpages to the wireless device.

In yet another aspect, the present disclosure provides a method in a RANnode configured to communicate with a wireless device. The methodcomprises a configuring step. In the configuring step, the RAN nodeconfigures a nominal paging group for a lowest coverage class (CC)within an extended Discontinuous Receive (eDRX) cycle for the wirelessdevice to correlate with an additional nominal paging group associatedwith a higher CC within the eDRX cycle for the wireless device (note:the higher CC is a new CC of the wireless device). The RAN nodetypically performs this configuration operation in response to receivinga paging request from the CN node and as such the new CC refers to theactual DL CC included within the paging request (i.e., the new CC isalso known as the DL CC currently stored by the CN node for the wirelessdevice and comprises the last DL CC information provided to the CN nodeby the wireless device). The RAN node by being configured to implementthe configuring step is advantageous in that it substantially decreasesthe potential for missed pages to the wireless device.

In yet another aspect, the present disclosure provides a CN nodeconfigured to communicate with a wireless device and a RAN node. The CNnode comprises a processor and at least one memory that storesprocessor-executable instructions, wherein the processor interfaces withthe at least one memory to execute the processor-executableinstructions, whereby the CN node is operable to perform a receiveoperation. In the receive operation, the CN node receives, from the RANnode, an indication that a current DL CC for the wireless device needsto be changed to either a higher DL CC or a lower DL CC, wherein theindication is associated with an UL-UNITDATA PDU or a LLC PDU. In oneexample, the indication is received in an information element within theUL-UNITDATA PDU that is associated with an uplink transmission which islimited to a cell update procedure when the current DL CC needs to bechanged to the higher DL CC. Alternatively, the indication is receivedin a field within the LLC PDU that is associated with an uplinktransmission which is limited to a cell update procedure when thecurrent DL CC needs to be changed to the higher DL CC. In anotherexample, the indication is received in an information element within theUL-UNITDATA PDU that is associated with an uplink transmission which hasanother purpose in addition to a cell update procedure when the currentDL CC needs to be changed to the lower DL CC. Alternatively, theindication is received in a field within the LLC PDU that is associatedwith an uplink transmission which has another purpose in addition to acell update procedure when the current DL CC needs to be changed to thelower DL CC. The CN node by being configured to implement the receiveoperation is advantageous since this provides a technique to receive achange in the coverage class of the wireless device other than by usinga Routing Area Update Procedure which is very signalling intensive andis as such not suitable for wireless devices targeting a 10 year batterylife time.

In yet another aspect, the present disclosure provides a method in a CNnode configured to communicate with a RAN node and a wireless device.The method comprises a receiving step. In the receiving step, the CNnode receives, from the RAN node, an indication that a current DL CC forthe wireless device needs to be changed to either a higher DL CC or alower DL CC, wherein the indication is associated with an UL-UNITDATAPDU or a LLC PDU. In one example, the indication is received in aninformation element within the UL-UNITDATA PDU that is associated withan uplink transmission which is limited to a cell update procedure whenthe current DL CC needs to be changed to the higher DL CC.Alternatively, the indication is received in a field within the LLC PDUthat is associated with an uplink transmission which is limited to acell update procedure when the current DL CC needs to be changed to thehigher DL CC. In another example, the indication is received in aninformation element within the UL-UNITDATA PDU that is associated withan uplink transmission which has another purpose in addition to a cellupdate procedure when the current DL CC needs to be changed to the lowerDL CC. Alternatively, the indication is received in a field within theLLC PDU that is associated with an uplink transmission which has anotherpurpose in addition to a cell update procedure when the current DL CCneeds to be changed to the lower DL CC. The CN node by being configuredto implement the receiving step is advantageous since this provides atechnique to receive a change in the coverage class of the wirelessdevice other than by using a Routing Area Update Procedure which is verysignalling intensive and is as such not suitable for wireless devicestargeting a 10 year battery life time.

Additional aspects of the invention will be set forth, in part, in thedetailed description, figures and any claims which follow, and in partwill be derived from the detailed description, or can be learned bypractice of the invention. It is to be understood that both theforegoing general description and the following detailed description areexemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the inventionas disclosed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete understanding of the present invention may be obtainedby reference to the following detailed description when taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 (PRIOR ART) is an illustration showing the current paging groupprocedure and the problem associated therewith which is addressed by thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of an exemplary wireless communication network inaccordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is an illustration showing a first example of the new paginggroup procedure in accordance with an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 4 is an illustration showing a second example of the new paginggroup procedure in accordance with an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 5 is an illustration showing a third example of the new paginggroup procedure in accordance with an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a method implemented in a wireless device inaccordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating structures of an exemplarywireless device in accordance with an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a method implemented in a RAN node (e.g., BSS)in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating structures of an exemplary RANnode (e.g., BSS) in accordance with an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a method implemented in a CN node (e.g., SGSN)in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating structures of an exemplary CNnode (e.g., SGSN) in accordance with an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

To describe the technical features of the present disclosure, adiscussion is provided first to describe an exemplary wirelesscommunication network which includes a wireless device, RAN nodes (e.g.,BSSs), and a CN node (e.g., SGSN), each of which are configured inaccordance with different embodiments of the present disclosure (seeFIG. 2). Then, a discussion is provided to explain the techniquesimplemented by the wireless device, the RAN node, and the CN node inaccordance with different embodiments of the present disclosure (seeFIGS. 3-5). Thereafter, a discussion is provided to explain in moredetail the various techniques implemented by each of the wirelessdevice, the RAN node, and the CN node in accordance with differentembodiments of the present disclosure (see FIGS. 6-11).

Note: the scenarios described herein associated with the presentdisclosure are based on terminology associated with EC-GSM but it shouldbe appreciated that the present disclosure is not limited to EC-GSMscenarios.

Exemplary Wireless Communication Network 200

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary wireless communication network 200 inaccordance with the present disclosure. The wireless communicationnetwork 200 includes multiple RAN nodes 204 a and 204 b (only two shown)and a CN node 206 which interface with multiple wireless devices 208(only one shown). The wireless communication network 200 also includesmany well-known components, but for clarity, only the components neededto describe the features of the present disclosure are described herein.Further, the wireless communication network 200 is described herein asbeing a GSM/EGPRS wireless communication network 200 which is also knownas an EDGE wireless communication network 200. However, those skilled inthe art will readily appreciate that the techniques of the presentdisclosure which are applied to the GSM/EGPRS wireless communicationnetwork 200 are generally applicable to other types of wirelesscommunication systems, including, for example, WCDMA, LTE, and WiMAXsystems.

As shown, the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) comprises a processor 210a, storage 212 a, interface 214 a, and antenna 216 a (note: the RAN node204 b would have similar components as RAN node 204 a). The CN node 206(e.g., SGSN 206) comprises a processor 218, storage 220, and interface222. The wireless device 208 comprises a processor 226, storage 228,interface 230, and antenna 232. These components may work together inorder to provide RAN node 204 a and 204 b, CN node 206 and/or wirelessdevice 208 functionality, such as providing wireless connections in thewireless communication network 200 and allowing for a change inestimated DL CC. Further, the RAN nodes 204 a and 204 b, the CN node206, and the wireless device 208 include many well-known components, butfor clarity, only the components needed to describe the features of thepresent disclosure are described herein.

In different embodiments, the wireless communication network 200 maycomprise any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, basestations, controllers, wireless devices, relay stations, and/or anyother components that may facilitate or participate in the communicationof data and/or signals whether via wired or wireless connections.Further, the wireless communication network 200 may comprise orinterface with one or more IP networks, public switched telephonenetworks (PSTNs), packet data networks, optical networks, wide areanetworks (WANs), local area networks (LANs), wireless local areanetworks (WLANs), wired networks, wireless networks, metropolitan areanetworks, and other networks to enable communication between devices.

As discussed above, the RAN node 204 a comprises the processor 210 a,storage 212 a, interface 214 a, and antenna 216 a. These components 210a, 212 a, 214 a and 216 a are depicted as single boxes located within asingle larger box. In practice however, the RAN node 204 a (and RAN node204 b) may comprise multiple different physical components that make upa single illustrated component (e.g., interface 214 a may compriseterminals for coupling wires for a wired connection and a radiotransceiver for a wireless connection). Similarly, the RAN node 204 amay comprise multiple physically separate components (e.g., a NodeBcomponent and a RNC component, a BTS component and a BSC component,etc.), which may each have their own respective processor, storage, andinterface components. In certain scenarios in which the RAN node 204 acomprises multiple separate components (e.g., BTS and BSC components),one or more of the separate components may be shared among severalnetwork nodes. For example, a single RNC may control multiple NodeB's.In such a scenario, each unique NodeB and BSC pair may be a separatenetwork node. In some embodiments, the RAN node 204 a may be configuredto support multiple radio access technologies (RATs). In suchembodiments, some components may be duplicated (e.g., separate storage212 a for the different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g.,the same antenna 216 a may be shared by the RATs).

The processor 210 a may be a combination of one or more of amicroprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central processing unit,digital signal processor, application specific integrated circuit, fieldprogrammable gate array, or any other suitable computing device,resource, or combination of hardware, software and/or encoded logicoperable to provide, either alone or in conjunction with other RAN node204 a components, such as storage 212 a, RAN node 204 a functionality.For example, processor 210 a may execute instructions stored in storage212 a. Such functionality may include providing various wirelessfeatures discussed herein to wireless devices, such as wireless device208, including any of the features or benefits disclosed herein.

The storage 212 a may comprise any form of volatile or non-volatilecomputer readable memory including, without limitation, persistentstorage, solid state memory, remotely mounted memory, magnetic media,optical media, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM),removable media, or any other suitable local or remote memory component.Storage 212 a may store any suitable instructions, data or information,including software and encoded logic, utilized by RAN node 204 a.Storage 212 a may be used to store any calculations made by processor210 a and/or any data received via interface 214 a.

The RAN node 204 a also comprises the interface 214 a which may be usedin the wired or wireless communication of signaling and/or data betweenthe RAN node 204 a, the wireless communication network 200, RAN node 204b, and/or the wireless device 208. For example, the interface 214 a mayperform any formatting, coding, or translating that may be needed toallow the RAN node 204 a to send and receive data from the wirelesscommunication network 200 over a wired connection. The interface 214 amay also include a radio transmitter and/or receiver that may be coupledto or a part of antenna 216 a. The radio may receive digital data thatis to be sent out to other network nodes or wireless devices via awireless connection. The radio may convert the digital data into a radiosignal having the appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters. Theradio signal may then be transmitted via antenna 216 a to theappropriate recipient (e.g., wireless device 208). It should beappreciated that the CN node 206's processor 218, storage 220 andinterface 222 may be the same as or similar to the RAN node 204 a'sprocessor 210 a, storage 212 a and interface 214 a.

The antenna 216 a may be any type of antenna capable of transmitting andreceiving data and/or signals wirelessly. In some embodiments, theantenna 216 a may comprise one or more omni-directional, sector or panelantennas operable to transmit/receive radio signals between, forexample, 2 GHz and 66 GHz. An omni-directional antenna may be used totransmit/receive radio signals in any direction, a sector antenna may beused to transmit/receive radio signals from devices within a particulararea, and a panel antenna may be a line of sight antenna used totransmit/receive radio signals in a relatively straight line.

The wireless device 208 may be any type of wireless endpoint, mobilestation, mobile phone, wireless local loop phone, smartphone, IoT, userequipment, desktop computer, PDA, cell phone, tablet, laptop, VoIP phoneor handset, which is able to wirelessly send and receive data and/orsignals to and from a network node, such as RAN node 204. As discussedabove, the wireless device 208 comprises the processor 226, storage 228,interface 230, and antenna 232. Like the RAN node 204 a, the componentsof the wireless device 208 are depicted as single boxes located within asingle larger box, however in practice the wireless device 208 maycomprise multiple different physical components that make up a singleillustrated component (e.g., storage 228 may comprise multiple discretemicrochips, each microchip representing a portion of the total storagecapacity).

The processor 226 may be a combination of one or more of amicroprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central processing unit,digital signal processor, application specific integrated circuit, fieldprogrammable gate array, or any other suitable computing device,resource, or combination of hardware, software and/or encoded logicoperable to provide, either alone or in combination with othercomponents of the wireless device 208, such as storage 228, wirelessdevice 208 functionality. Such functionality may include providingvarious wireless features discussed herein, including any of thefeatures or benefits disclosed herein.

The storage 228 may be any form of volatile or non-volatile memoryincluding, without limitation, persistent storage, solid state memory,remotely mounted memory, magnetic media, optical media, random accessmemory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), removable media, or any othersuitable local or remote memory component. The storage 228 may store anysuitable data, instructions, or information, including software andencoded logic, utilized by the wireless device 208. The storage 228 maybe used to store any calculations made by the processor 226 and/or anydata received via the interface 230.

The interface 230 may be used in the wireless communication of signalingand/or data between the wireless device 208 and the RAN node 204 a (orRAN node 204 b). For example, the interface 230 may perform anyformatting, coding, or translating that may be needed to allow thewireless device 208 to send to and receive data from the RAN node 204 aover a wireless connection. The interface 230 may also include a radiotransmitter and/or receiver that may be coupled to or a part of antenna232. The radio may receive digital data that is to be sent out to theRAN node 204 a via a wireless connection. The radio may convert thedigital data into a radio signal having the appropriate channel andbandwidth parameters. The radio signal may then be transmitted viaantenna 232 to the RAN node 204 a.

The antenna 232 may be any type of antenna capable of transmitting andreceiving data and/or signals wirelessly. In some embodiments, theantenna 232 may comprise one or more omni-directional, sector or panelantennas operable to transmit/receive radio signals between 2 GHz and 66GHz. For simplicity, the antenna 232 may be considered a part of theinterface 230 to the extent that a wireless signal is being used.

In some embodiments, the components described above may be used toimplement one or more functional modules used in EC-GSM—Dynamic CoverageClass Update. The functional modules may comprise software, computerprograms, sub-routines, libraries, source code, or any other form ofexecutable instructions that are run by, for example, a processor. Ingeneral terms, each functional module may be implemented in hardwareand/or in software. Preferably, one or more or all functional modulesmay be implemented by processors 210 a, 218 and/or 226, possibly incooperation with storage 212 a, 220, and/or 228. Processors 210 a, 218and/or 226, and storage 212 a, 220, and/or 228 may thus be arranged toallow processors 210 a, 218 and/or 226 to fetch instructions fromstorage 212 a, 220, and/or 228 and execute the fetched instructions toallow the respective functional module to perform any features orfunctions disclosed herein. The modules may further be configured toperform other functions or steps not explicitly described herein butwhich would be within the knowledge of a person skilled in the art.

Techniques Implemented by Devices 208, 204 a and 206

Even though the wireless device 208 (e.g., EC-GSM device 208) isexpected per the prior art to provide the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206)with the wireless device 208's estimated DL CC within, for example, thecontext of the RAU procedure, there remains the possibility that thewireless device 208 will change its estimated DL CC at any time betweenany two such successive RAU procedures. As such, allowing for a changein estimated DL CC should be supported using a method per the presentdisclosure that:

-   -   Avoids expensive NAS layer communications being triggered to        update the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206) with a new estimated DL        CC.    -   Prevents the new nominal paging group corresponding to the new        DL CC from occurring at a substantially earlier or later point        within the eDRX cycle than the old nominal paging group in order        to minimize the potential for missed pages.    -   Allow for a paging group of a lower coverage class (less        resources needed to reach the wireless device 208) to be        comprised of a set of paging blocks that occur as a sub-set of        the paging blocks comprising the paging group of a higher        coverage class for the same eDRX cycle.    -   Removing the mandatory need for a wireless device 208 to        communicate with the network when changing from a higher to        lower coverage class.

The methods described in the present disclosure are based on a proposalto extend coverage in GSM hence the use of terms like EC-GSM and eDRX.However, the principles of the present disclosure generally apply forany system where paging based reachability of wireless devices is used,and where the wireless device can be defined to be in different stateswhen configured to use a given eDRX cycle length. The different stateshere imply the monitoring of different paging resources depending on thewireless device state (e.g., the state can be based on the DL CC usedwithin the context of a given eDRX cycle).

1. Method for Updating DL Coverage Class

1.1 Pre-Paging Group Update of DL CC

This method is especially suitable to, but is not limited to, the casewhere the coverage class has deteriorated such that the wireless device208 (e.g., EC-GSM device 208) will not be able to decode the pagingmessage using the number of repetitions (i.e., the number of pagingblocks needed for a wireless device 208 to receive a paging message onthe radio interface as determined by its current coverage class)corresponding to the downlink coverage class last provided to the CNnode 206 (e.g., SGSN 206). To reduce the possibility of excessivesignaling between the wireless device 208 and the CN node 206 (e.g.,SGSN 206), whenever the wireless device 208 determines its current DL CCshould be changed it can wait until shortly before (e.g., apredetermined time such as 5 seconds) the next occurrence of its nominalpaging group (i.e., based on its current DL CC) before performing a cellupdate that conveys or transmits (e.g., via the RAN node 204 a) anindication of its new DL CC to the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206). The useof the cell update procedure requires the transmission of only a singleRLC data block and is therefore a power efficient way of triggering a DLCC update in the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206). In addition, by havingthe wireless device 208 wait until just before or shortly before thenext occurrence of its nominal paging group to finally determine thatits DL CC needs to be changed ensures that the cell update will be usedas sparingly as possible. This solution is useful whenever the wirelessdevice 208 changes to a higher coverage class (requiring more blindrepetitions) in order for the wireless device 208 to be able to, with ahigher degree of probability, read a page that may have been sent usingits nominal paging group. This does not guarantee that the wirelessdevice 208 will always be able to read a page sent using the nominalpaging group indicated by its recently transmitted cell update but itwill reduce the probability of missing a page to the point wheresecondary paging mechanisms are not seen as being necessary. Thespecific information that indicates a higher DL CC is to be used forpaging the wireless device 208 can be carried from the wireless device208 to the RAN node 204 a or from the wireless device 208 to the CN node206 in any one of a variety of ways, including (for example):

-   -   Using a code point within the access request sent on the RACH,        requesting UL TBF resources to send the cell update (e.g., the        wireless device 208 transmits to the RAN node 204 a).    -   Using information carried within the LLC PDU that serves as the        cell update message (see section 1.2.1) (e.g., the wireless        device 208 transmits to the CN node 206).    -   Using information carried within the RLC data block used to        convey the LLC PDU with the assigned UL TBF resources (e.g., the        wireless device 208 transmits to the RAN node 204 a).    -   Using the RLC/MAC header content (e.g., using unused bits in the        header to indicate an updated coverage class) (e.g., the        wireless device 208 transmits to the RAN node 204 a).        1.2 Transaction Time Update of DL CC

This method is suitable if the coverage class has improved such that thewireless device 208 (e.g., EC-GSM device 208) will be able to decode thepaging message using a smaller number of repetitions than the number ofrepetitions corresponding to the downlink coverage class last providedto the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206). In other words, because thewireless device 208 has determined that its coverage class has improvedit can wait until the next occurrence of an uplink transaction to informthe CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206) of the new DL CC (i.e., instead ofperforming a cell update shortly before its next nominal paging group asper the method described in section 1.1 for changing to a higher DL CC).This is possible because the wireless device 208 can safely continue touse its current DL CC to read paging messages since the wireless device208 is currently in a better coverage class than what the CN node 206(e.g., SGSN 206) currently assumes. The advantage with this method isthat no explicit signaling is needed prior to the occurrence of the nextnominal paging group as per the method described in section 1.1 forchanging to the higher DL CC.

1.2.1 Conveying Updated DL CC Information Using SAPI

Updating the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206) to use a new DL CC for a givenwireless device 208 can be realized using reserved SAPI values in theLLC header whenever the wireless device 208 establishes an UL TBF tosend uplink data of any kind (e.g., the uplink data may be a report, anapplication layer ACK, a page response or a cell update) to the network.

-   -   One example of using reserved SAPI values in the LLC header is        shown in TABLE 1 below. The LLC protocol is specified in 3GPP TS        44.064 V12.0.0 (2014-09) (the contents of which are hereby        incorporated herein by reference).    -   SAPI allows 16 service access points to be specified. The SAPI        values are allocated as shown in TABLE 1 with the modification        per the present disclosure that five reserved SAPI values (see        bold text) have been changed to signal the current coverage        class as estimated by the wireless device 208.    -   The legacy LL3, LL5, LL9 and LL11 SAPIs can correspond to        coverage class 1 devices where, per one embodiment of the        present disclosure, 5 new LLC SAPIs with coverage classes        specific for CC2 and above are added as shown in the bold text        in TABLE 1.

This method for conveying the updated DL CC is applicable when the DLcoverage class of the wireless device 208 (e.g., EC-GSM device 208) islower (i.e., better radio conditions) or higher (i.e., worse radioconditions) than the DL CC previously signaled to the CN node 206 (e.g.,SGSN 206).

TABLE 1 Allocation of SAPI values SAPI Related Service SAP Name 0000Reserved — 0001 GPRS Mobility Management LLGMM 0010 Tunnelling ofmessages 2 TOM2 0011 User data 3 LL3 0100 Reserved — 0101 User data 5LL5 0110 Reserved — 0111 SMS LLSMS 1000 Tunnelling of messages 8 TOM81001 User data 9 LL9 1010

 Coverage Class 2 LL10 1011 User data 11 LL11 1100

 Coverage Class 3 LL12 1101

 Coverage Class 4 LL13 1110

 Coverage Class 5 LL14 1111

 Coverage Class 6 LL151.2.2 Conveying Updated DL CC Information Using BSSGP

Another possibility for updating the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206) withthe DL coverage class is to modify the current 3GPP TS 48.018UL-UNITDATA PDU which the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) uses totransfer a wireless device 208's LLC-PDU and its associated radiointerface information across the Gb-interface to the CN node 206 (e.g.,SGSN 206). These modifications can be seen below in TABLE 2 which is thesame as Table 10.2.2 in 3GPP TS 48.018 V12.4.0 (2014-11) (the contentsof which are incorporated by reference herein) that describes thecontent of the UL-UNITDATA PDU, but TABLE 2 has been updated to includea new Coverage Class Information Element (IE). Whenever the wirelessdevice 208 (e.g., EC-GSM device 208) accesses the network it transmits aRACH request to the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) including anindication of its estimated DL CC so the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204a) is able to properly assign resources and transmit the ImmediateAssignment message with the appropriate number of repetitions to thewireless device 208 (e.g., EC-GSM device 208). This means that wheneverthe wireless device 208 (e.g., EC-GSM device 208) sends uplink data tothe RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a), the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204a) may then add the latest coverage class information (see bold text inTABLE 2) to a UL-UNITDATA PDU which the RAN node 204 a transmits to theCN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206). This method for conveying an indication ofthe updated DL CC is applicable when the coverage class of the wirelessdevice 208 (e.g., EC-GSM device 208) is lower (i.e., better radioconditions) or higher (i.e., worse radio conditions) than the DL CCpreviously signaled to the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206).

TABLE 2 UL-UNITDATA PDU content Information element Type/ReferencePresence Format Length PDU type PDU type/11.3.26 M V 1 TLLI TLLI/11.3.35M V 4 QoS Profile QoS Profile/11.3.28 M V 3 Cell Identifier Cell M TLV10  (note 5) Identifier/11.3.9 PFI PFI/11.3.42 O TLV 3 LSA IdentifierLSA Identifier O TLV 3-? List List/11.3.18 Redirect Attempt RedirectAttempt O TLV 3 Flag (Note 3) Flag/11.3.111 IMSI (note 2) IMSI/11.3.14 OTLV  5-10 Unconfirmed send Unconfirmed O TLV 4 state variable send state(note 4) variable/11.3.214 Selected PLMN ID Selected PLMN O TLV 5 (note5) ID/11.3.218 Alignment octets Alignment O TLV 2-5 octets/11.3.1Coverage Class* Coverage O V 2 Class/11.3.xxx LLC-PDU (note 1)LLC-PDU/11.3.15 M TLV 2-? NOTE 1: The LLC-PDU Length Indicator may bezero. NOTE 2: IMSI may be included if available and if Redirect AttemptFlag is present. NOTE 3: This element indicates that the core networkmay respond with either Redirection Indication IE or RedirectionCompleted IE in DL_UNITDATA NOTE 4: Unconfirmed send state variableshall be included if received in the previous DL_UNITDATA. NOTE 5:Selected PLMN ID shall be included in the case of a mobile stationsupporting network sharing when a foreign TLLI or a random TLLI isincluded in the UL-UNIDATA PDU; in such a case the Common PLMN ID shallbe included within the Cell Identifier IE *Indicates the new CoverageClass Information Element added per an embodiment of the presentdisclosure to 3GPP TS 48.018 V12.4.0 (2014-11).One possible way to realize the new Coverage Class Information Elementshown above it to revise 3GPP TS 48.018 V12.4.0 (2014-11) as follows:11.3.xxx Coverage ClassThe purpose of the Coverage Class information element is to allow theBSS to update the stored Coverage class in the SGSN of an EC-GSM device.The Coverage Class information element would be coded as shown in TABLE3 (which would be a new Table 11.3.xxxx2.2 in 3GPP TS 48.018 V12.4.0(2014-11)).

TABLE 3 Coverage Class 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 IEI octet 1 Coverage Class octet2 Coverage class value (octet 2) Bits 4 3 2 1 0 0 0 1 Coverage Class 1 00 1 0 Coverage Class 2 0 0 1 1 Coverage Class 3 0 1 0 0 Coverage Class 40 1 0 1 Coverage Class 5 0 1 1 0 Coverage Class 6 Other values are spare

It should be noted that in practice any uplink PDU or a new PDU on theGb interface may be updated to convey the coverage class of the wirelessdevice 208 (e.g., EC-GSM device 208) per the present disclosure.

2. Aligning Coverage Class Paging Groups

2.1 Solution

As discussed above in the Background Section, if a wireless devicedetermines its paging group based on the current procedure, by mod(IMSI,N), where N is the number of paging groups within the eDRX cycleand the result of the operation is the paging block(s) to be monitoredby the wireless device, then the nominal paging group for a givencoverage class can occur uncorrelated (in time) from the nominal paginggroup associated with another coverage class, within the same eDRXcycle. If the nominal paging groups are uncorrelated with respect to thecoverage classes, then if the wireless device 208 has a change in thecoverage class the new nominal paging group corresponding to the new DLCC can occur at a substantially earlier or later point within the eDRXcycle when compared to the old nominal paging group, thus increasing thepotential for missed pages (see FIG. 1). To address this problem andavoid the nominal paging groups corresponding to different coverageclasses being spread-out in time, the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a)can configure the nominal paging group for a lowest coverage class (CC)within the eDRX cycle for the wireless device 208 to correlate with anadditional nominal paging group associated with a higher CC (i.e., thenew CC of wireless device 208) within the eDRX cycle for the wirelessdevice 208. The wireless device 208 in order to communicate with the RANnode 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) would also configure in a similar mannerthe nominal paging group for the lowest coverage class (CC) within theeDRX cycle to correlate with the additional nominal paging groupassociated with a higher CC (i.e., the new CC of wireless device 208)within the eDRX cycle.

In one embodiment, this correlation can be accomplished where the RANnode 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) first identifies the specific nominalpaging group supported within a given eDRX cycle for a given wirelessdevice 208 (e.g., identifiable by its IMSI) by assuming (e.g.,determining by default) CC1 (the lowest CC) as the current DL CC of thewireless device 208. This nominal paging group corresponds to a singleblock (EC-PCH block) and is denoted herein as the “benchmark EC-PCHblock” or “benchmark paging block.” The RAN node 204 a then takes intoaccount the actual new CC wherein it identifies the full set of pagingblocks (EC-PCH blocks) associated with the actual new CC and follows theprinciple that the full set of EC-PCH paging blocks used for the actualnew CC shall also comprise the benchmark EC-PCH block. The nominalpaging group for the wireless device 208 therefore comprises all EC-PCHblocks corresponding to its actual new CC. For example, if the EC-PCHresources used on the EC-PCH for coverage class 5 is defined asEC-PCH_(CC5), then EC-PCH_(CC4) shall be a subset of EC-PCH_(CC5),EC-PCH_(CC3) shall be a subset of EC-PCH_(CC4), etc.

This method is illustrated in TABLE 4 below where an example of how tomap the logical EC-PCH channel onto physical resources within the 51multiframe structure is shown. As can be seen, the benchmark EC-PCHblock mapped onto TDMA frame 21 and 22 is included in all other EC-PCHblocks used for the nominal paging groups of all the higher coverageclasses that could be used by the wireless device 208 for a given eDRXcycle (bold indication). This example is also illustrated in FIG. 3, andin FIGS. 4 and 5 with different benchmark EC-PCH blocks in each figure.

TABLE 4 Example of benchmark EC-PCH block and corresponding EC-PCHblocks of other coverage classes (CCs) Repeat length Coverage ChannelTDMA class Interleaved block designation Dir. frames (CC) TDMA framemapping EC-PCH D 51 1 B0(19, 20), B1(21, 22), . . . , B15(49, 50) 51 2B0(19, . . . , 22), B1(23, . . . , 26), . . . , B7(47, . . . , 50) 51 3B0(19, . . . , 26), B1(27, . . . , 34), . . . , B3(43, . . . , 50) 51 4B0(19, . . . , 34), B1(35, . . . , 50) 102 5 B0(19, . . . , 34 + 51N),B1(35, . . . , 50 + 51N), N = 0, 1 204 6 B0(19, . . . , 34 + 51N),B1(35, . . . , 50 + 51N), N = 0, 1, 2, 3

By using this method, the set of EC-PCH blocks of interest for any givencoverage class may be located within 4 51-multiframes (i.e., the maximumduration of the paging group of the worse coverage class) from thebenchmark EC-PCH block (see Section 2.2 for a more completeexplanation). A wireless device 208 (for example) that uses CC1 may usethe benchmark EC-PCH block as its nominal paging group. If the wirelessdevice 208's coverage class changes to CC2 or higher then it willestablish a new nominal paging group wherein the EC-PCH block itmonitors according to CC1 (i.e., the benchmark EC-PCH block) will beincluded within the set of EC-PCH blocks it monitors according to thenew nominal paging group associated with the changed CC2 or higher.

Furthermore, a wireless device 208 (for example) changing its coverageclass from a higher coverage class (associated with poor radioconditions) to a lower coverage class (associated with better radioconditions) does not necessarily have to indicate this to the network(e.g., SGSN 206) since it is always ensured that if the network (e.g.,SGSN 206) pages the wireless device 208 according to the higher coverageclass, the EC-PCH block(s) corresponding to the lower coverage class(which the wireless device 208 would monitor if the coverage class isreduced) will always be included in the set of EC-PCH blocks monitoredaccording to a higher coverage class transmission (see section 1.2).

2.2 Paging Group Determination

When paging the wireless device 208 (e.g., EC-GSM device 208), in orderto determine the specific set of EC-PCH blocks to use to send the page,the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) needs to know:

-   -   the eDRX cycle    -   the downlink coverage class (DL CC), and,    -   the IMSI of the wireless device 208.

The DL CC is estimated by the wireless device 208 and communicated tothe network 200 (e.g., SGSN 206) where it is stored. The estimated DL CCwill determine the number of paging resources (EC-PCH blocks) requiredto be sent when paging the wireless device 208 in order for the network200 to be able to reach the wireless device 208, with a high degree ofprobability.

To accomplish all this, the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206) when sending apaging request to the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) includes anindication of the eDRX cycle, the DL CC and the IMSI associated with thetarget wireless device 208, thereby allowing the RAN node 204 a (e.g.,BSS 204 a) to determine the next occurrence of the nominal paging groupfor that wireless device 208 within its eDRX cycle as follows:

-   -   N is the number of paging groups corresponding to a given DL CC        within a given eDRX cycle and is determined based on        EXTENDED_DRX_MFRMS, EC_PCH_BLKS_MFRM, and CC_EC_PCH_BLKS where:        -   EXTENDED_DRX_MFRMS is the number of 51-multiframes per eDRX            cycle determined as per TABLE 5 below.        -   EC_PCH_BLKS_MFRM indicates the number of EC-PCH blocks            (i.e., the number of 2 bursts blocks) per 51-multiframe. For            EC-GSM this can be fixed at 16 which is the equivalent of            the legacy PCH_BLKS_MFRM parameter indicating 8 PCH blocks            per 51-multiframe.        -   CC_EC_PCH_BLKS is the number of EC-PCH blocks required for a            given DL CC (where the number of blind repetitions required            for any given DL CC is pre-defined by the specifications).    -   The set of eDRX cycle lengths identified by TABLE 5 is selected        such that each member of the set occurs an integral number of        times within the full TDMA Frame Number (FN) space.    -   N=(EC_PCH_BLKS_MFRM× EXTENDED_DRX_MFRMS)/CC_EC_PCH_BLKS. The        benchmark EC-PCH block for a wireless device using a given eDRX        cycle is determined based on where the nominal paging group        occurs for DL CC=1 (i.e., CC_EC_PCH_BLKS=1)    -   Benchmark EC-PCH block=Benchmark Nominal Paging Group=mod        (IMSI, N) where N=(16×EXTENDED_DRX_MFRMS)/1.

TABLE 5 Set of eDRX Cycles Supported Number of 51-MF eDRX eDRX Cycle pereDRX Cycles Value (EX- Target eDRX Cycle (EXTEND- per TDMA TENDED_DRX)Cycle Length ED_DRX_MFRMS) FN Space 0 ~30 seconds 128 416 1 ~60 seconds256 208 2 ~2 minutes 512 204 3 ~4 minutes 1024 52 4 ~6.5 minutes 1664 325 ~8 minutes 2048 26 6 ~13 minutes 3328 16 7 ~16 minutes 4096 13 8 ~26minutes 6656 8 9 ~52 minutes 13312 4 Note 1: 53248 51-multiframes occurwith the TDMA FN space (2715648 TDMA frames) Note 2: All remainingEXTENDED_DRX values are reserved

EXAMPLE 1 (SEE FIG. 3)

-   -   IMSI=00000000 01001001 00110000 00000001=4796417 and        EXTENDED_DRX_MFRMS=6656 (i.e., the eDRX cycle˜26 minutes).    -   N=16*6656=106496.    -   Benchmark Nominal Paging Group=mod (IMSI, 106496)=4097 which        occurs in the 4098^(th) EC-PCH block (i.e., in the 2^(nd) EC-PCH        block (see pattern block 302 associated with CC1 in FIG. 3) of        the eDRX cycle in 51-multiframe #257.    -   The nominal paging groups associated with other DL CCs for the        same IMSI and eDRX cycle length are shown in FIG. 3. As shown,        the nominal paging group for DL CC2 occurs in the 1^(st) and        2^(nd) EC-PCH blocks 304 of 51-multiframe #257. The nominal        paging group for DL CC3 occurs in the 1^(st), 2^(nd), 3^(rd) and        4^(th) EC-PCH blocks 306 of 51-multiframe #257. The nominal        paging group for DL CC4 occurs in the 1^(st) through 8^(th)        EC-PCH blocks 308 of 51-multiframe #257. The nominal paging        group for DL CC5 occurs in the 1^(st) through 8^(th) EC-PCH        blocks 310 of 51-multiframes #257 and #258. The nominal paging        group for DL CC6 occurs in the 1^(st) through 8^(th) EC-PCH        blocks 312 of 51-multiframes #257 through #260.

EXAMPLE 2 (SEE FIG. 4)

-   -   IMSI=00000000 00000010 00110000 00001010=143370 and        EXTENDED_DRX_MFRMS=6656 (i.e., the eDRX cycle˜26 minutes).    -   N=16*6656=106496.    -   Benchmark Nominal Paging Group=mod (IMSI, 106496)=36874 which        occurs in the 36875^(th) EC-PCH block (i.e., in the 11^(th)        EC-PCH block (see pattern block 402 associated with CC1 in        FIG. 4) of the eDRX cycle in 51-multiframe #2305)    -   The nominal paging groups associated with other DL CC for the        same IMSI and eDRX cycle length are shown in FIG. 4. As shown,        the nominal paging group for DL CC2 occurs in the 11^(th) and        12^(th) EC-PCH blocks 404 of 51-multiframe #2305). The nominal        paging group for DL CC3 occurs in the 9^(th), 10^(th), 11^(th)        and 12^(th) EC-PCH blocks 406 of 51-multiframe #2305. The        nominal paging group for DL CC4 occurs in the 9^(th) through        16^(th) EC-PCH blocks 408 of 51-multiframe #2305. The nominal        paging group for DL CC5 occurs in the 9^(th) through 16^(th)        EC-PCH blocks 410 of 51-multiframes #2305 and #2306. The nominal        paging group for DL CC6 occurs in the 9^(th) through 16^(th)        EC-PCH blocks 412 of 51-multiframes #2305 through #2308.

EXAMPLE 3 (SEE FIG. 5)

-   -   IMSI=00000000 00000010 00110000 00111111=143423 and        EXTENDED_DRX_MFRMS=6656 (i.e., the eDRX cycle˜26 minutes).    -   N=16*6656=106496.    -   Benchmark Nominal Paging Group=mod (IMSI, 106496)=36927 which        occurs in the 36928^(th) EC-PCH block (i.e., in the 16^(th)        EC-PCH block (see pattern block 502 associated with CC1 in        FIG. 5) of the eDRX cycle in 51-multiframe #2308).    -   The nominal paging groups associated with other DL CC for the        same IMSI and eDRX cycle length are shown in FIG. 5. As shown,        the nominal paging group for DL CC2 occurs in the 15^(th) and        16^(th) EC-PCH blocks 504 of 51-multiframe #2308. The nominal        paging group for DL CC3 occurs in the 13^(th), 14^(th), 15^(th)        and 16^(th) EC-PCH blocks 506 of 51-multiframe #2308. The        nominal paging group for DL CC4 occurs in the 9^(th) through        16^(th) EC-PCH blocks 508 of 51-multiframe #2308. The nominal        paging group for DL CC5 occurs in the 9^(th) through 16^(th)        EC-PCH blocks 510 of 51-multiframes #2307 and #2308. The nominal        paging group for DL CC6 occurs in the 9^(th) through 16^(th)        EC-PCH blocks 512 of 51-multiframes #2305 through #2308.

As can be seen in FIGS. 3-5, using this method for establishing CCspecific nominal paging groups for a given eDRX cycle means that for agiven IMSI (given wireless device 208) the nominal paging groupsassociated with the DL CCs will all fall within 4 51-multiframes of thebenchmark EC-PCH block (i.e., for CC1 the benchmark EC-PCH can also bereferred to as the Benchmark Nominal Paging Group). As such, if thewireless device 208 triggers a cell update e.g., 2 seconds prior to thenext occurrence of its nominal paging group, the RAN node 204 a (e.g.,BSS 204 a) will still be able to send a page in time for it to bereceived by the wireless device 208 that is now monitoring according toits DL CC incremented by 1 level. With the ability to update its DL CCas late as a few seconds before the next occurrence of its nominalpaging group, the wireless device 208 will experience a substantiallyreduced probability of missing a page due to experiencing DL CCdegradation while also conserving battery in that the wireless device208 only performs a cell update to provide the CN node 206 with anupdated DL CC only when absolutely needed (i.e., instead of immediatelyafter any given instance of DL CC degradation). In other words, anygiven instance of CC degradation could be transient in nature and assuch the wireless device 208 should wait as long as feasible (e.g., noless than 2 seconds prior to the next occurrence of its nominal paginggroup) to confirm that the degraded DL CC is still applicable. Forexample, if the current DL CC for the wireless device 208 is CC1 and adegradation to CC2 occurs but only lasts 1 minute at which point animprovement back to CC1 occurs and remains in effect until the nextinstance of its nominal paging group, then if the two changes of CCoccur multiple minutes before the next instance of its nominal paginggroup the wireless device 208 will not need to perform a cell updatefollowing either of the two changes in DL CC (i.e., the wireless device208 saves the battery consumption that would otherwise occur if a cellupdate was performed immediately after detecting either a degradation orimprovement in DL CC).

Detailed Techniques Implemented by Devices 208, 204 a and 206

Referring to FIG. 6, there is a flowchart of a method 600 implemented ina wireless device 208 in accordance with an embodiment of the presentdisclosure. At step 602, the wireless device 208 determines that thecurrent DL CC needs to be changed to a higher DL CC or a lower DL CC.For instance, the wireless device 208 can make this determination byperiodically monitoring the logical channels known as FCCH and EC-SCHand thereby evaluate how quickly their respective content can beacquired (i.e., the more quickly these logical channels can be acquiredthe lower the coverage class of the wireless device 208).

Based on the determination in step 602 that the wireless device 208needs to change the current DL CC to a higher DL CC, the wireless device208 at step 604 transmits an indication of the higher DL CC for the CNnode 206 (e.g., SGSN 206) by performing a cell update procedure, forexample, before the next occurrence of its nominal paging group(determined using the current DL CC). For example, the wireless device208 may transmit the indication of the higher DL CC for the CN node 206(e.g., SGSN 206) by performing the cell update procedure and using oneof the following (for example): (1) a code point within an accessrequest sent on a RACH requesting UL TBF resources to send a cell updatemessage; (2) a reserved SAPI value in a header of a LLC PDU that servesas the cell update message; (3) information carried within a RLC datablock which conveys at least a portion of the LLC PDU using assigned ULTBF resources; and, (4) information carried within a RLC/MAC header ofthe RLC data block which conveys at least a portion of the LLC PDU usingthe assigned UL TBF resources. In one embodiment, the wireless device208 would perform steps 602 and 604 at a predetermined time (e.g., 5seconds) before a next occurrence of a nominal paging group. Thewireless device 208 may transmit the indication of the higher DL CC tothe RAN node 204 a, which in turn may transmit the indication of thehigher DL CC to the CN node 206.

Based on the determination in step 602 that the wireless device 208needs to change the current DL CC to a lower DL CC, the wireless device208 performs either step 606 or step 608. In step 606, wireless device208 does not transmit an indication of the lower DL CC for the CN node206 (e.g., SGSN 206). In step 608, the wireless device 208 transmits anindication of the lower DL CC in an uplink transmission (not restrictedto a cell update as in step 604) for the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206).In this case, the uplink transmission would have in addition toconveying (e.g., transmitting via the RAN node 204 a) the indication ofthe lower DL CC to the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206) another purpose suchas sending uplink data of any kind including, for example, the uplinkdata may be a report, an application layer ACK, or a page response.Further, the wireless device 208 may transmit the indication of thelower DL CC for the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206) in an uplinktransmission (not restricted to a cell update as in step 604) using oneof the following (for example): (1) a code point within an accessrequest sent on a RACH requesting UL TBF resources to send the uplinktransmission; (2) a reserved SAPI value in a header of a LLC PDU thatserves as the uplink transmission; (3) information carried within a RLCdata block which conveys at least a portion of the LLC PDU usingassigned UL TBF resources; and (4) information carried within a RLC/MACheader of the RLC data block which conveys at least a portion of the LLCPDU using the assigned UL TBF resources. The wireless device 208 maytransmit the indication of the lower DL CC to the RAN node 204 a, whichin turn may transmit the indication of the lower DL CC to the CN node206.

At step 610, the wireless device 208 configures a nominal paging groupfor a lowest CC within an eDRX cycle associated with the wireless device208 to correlate with an additional nominal paging group associated witha higher CC (i.e., the new CC of the wireless device 208) within theeDRX cycle (see earlier discussion in sections 2.1 and 2.2 aboutaligning coverage class paging groups). For instance, the wirelessdevice 208 can perform step 610 by using a benchmark paging blockassociated with the lowest CC to identify the nominal paging group forthe lowest CC (CC1) and an additional nominal paging group associatedwith the higher CC (i.e., the new CC of the wireless device 208) suchthat the additional nominal paging group has a set of paging blockscomprising the benchmark paging block. The RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204a) would perform these same steps such that both the wireless device 208and the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) have the same configuredadditional nominal paging group and as a result can communicate with oneanother.

Referring to FIG. 7, there is a block diagram illustrating structures ofan exemplary wireless device 208 configured to interact with the CN node206 (e.g., SGSN 206) in accordance with an embodiment of the presentdisclosure. In an embodiment, the wireless device 208 may comprise adetermine module 702, a first transmit module 704, a non-transmit module706, a second transmit module 708, and a configuration module 710. Thedetermine module 702 is configured to determine that the current DL CCneeds to be changed to a higher DL CC or a lower DL CC. For instance,the determine module 702 can make this determination by periodicallymonitoring the logical channels known as FCCH and EC-SCH and therebyevaluate how quickly their respective content can be acquired (i.e., themore quickly these logical channels can be acquired the lower thecoverage class of the wireless device 208)

Based on the determination that the wireless device 208 needs to changethe current DL CC to a higher DL CC, the first transmit module 704 isconfigured to transmit an indication of the higher DL CC for the CN node206 (e.g., SGSN 206) by performing a cell update procedure, for example,before the next occurrence of its nominal paging group (determined usingthe current DL CC). For example, the first transmit module 704 maytransmit the indication of the higher DL CC for the CN node 206 (e.g.,SGSN 206) by performing the cell update procedure and using one of thefollowing (for example): (1) a code point within an access request senton a RACH requesting UL TBF resources to send a cell update message; (2)a reserved SAPI value in a header of a LLC PDU that serves as the cellupdate message; (3) information carried within a RLC data block whichconveys at least a portion of the LLC PDU using assigned UL TBFresources; and, (4) information carried within a RLC/MAC header of theRLC data block which conveys at least a portion of the LLC PDU using theassigned UL TBF resources. In one embodiment, the determine module 702and the first transmit module 704 would perform their respectiveoperations at a predetermined time (e.g., 5 seconds) before a nextoccurrence of a nominal paging group.

Based on the determination that the wireless device 208 needs to changethe current DL CC to a lower DL CC, the non-transmit module 706 isconfigured to not transmit an indication of the lower DL CC for the CNnode 206 (e.g., SGSN 206). Alternatively, the second transmit module 708is configured to transmit an indication of the lower DL CC in an uplinktransmission (not restricted to a cell update as in step 604) for the CNnode 206 (e.g., SGSN 206). In this case, the uplink transmission wouldhave in addition to conveying (e.g., transmitting via the RAN node 204a) the indication of the lower DL CC to the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206)another purpose such as sending uplink data of any kind including, forexample, the uplink data may be a report, an application layer ACK, or apage response. Further, the second transmit module 708 may transmit theindication of the lower DL CC for the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206) in anuplink transmission (not restricted to a cell update as in step 604)using one of the following (for example): (1) a code point within anaccess request sent on a RACH requesting UL TBF resources to send theuplink transmission; (2) a reserved SAPI value in a header of a LLC PDUthat serves as the uplink transmission; (3) information carried within aRLC data block which conveys at least a portion of the LLC PDU usingassigned UL TBF resources; and (4) information carried within a RLC/MACheader of the RLC data block which conveys at least a portion of the LLCPDU using the assigned UL TBF resources.

The configuration module 710 is configured to configure a nominal paginggroup for a lowest CC within an eDRX cycle associated with the wirelessdevice 208 to correlate with an additional nominal paging groupassociated with a higher CC (i.e., the new CC of the wireless device208) within the eDRX cycle (see earlier discussion in sections 2.1 and2.2 about aligning coverage class paging groups). For instance, theconfiguration module 710 can accomplish this by using a benchmark pagingblock associated with the lowest CC to identify the nominal paging groupfor the lowest CC (CC1) and an additional nominal paging groupassociated with a higher CC (i.e., the new CC of the wireless device208) such that the additional nominal paging group has a set of pagingblocks comprising the benchmark paging block.

As those skilled in the art will appreciate, the above-described modules702, 704, 706, 708, and 710 of the wireless device 208 may beimplemented separately as suitable dedicated circuits. Further, themodules 702, 704, 706, 708, and 710 can also be implemented using anynumber of dedicated circuits through functional combination orseparation. In some embodiments, the modules 702, 704, 706, 708, and 710may be even combined in a single application specific integrated circuit(ASIC). As an alternative software-based implementation, the wirelessdevice 208 may comprise a memory 228, a processor 226 (including but notlimited to a microprocessor, a microcontroller or a Digital SignalProcessor (DSP), etc.) and an interface 230. The memory 228 storesmachine-readable program code executable by the processor 226 to causethe wireless device 208 to perform the steps of the above-describedmethod 600.

Referring to FIG. 8, there is a flowchart of a method 800 implemented ina RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) (for example) in accordance with anembodiment of the present disclosure. At step 802, the RAN node 204 a(e.g., BSS 204 a) configures a nominal paging group for a lowest CCwithin an eDRX cycle associated with the wireless device 208 tocorrelate with an additional nominal paging group associated with ahigher CC (i.e., the new CC of the wireless device 208) within the eDRXcycle associated with the wireless device 208 (see earlier discussion insections 2.1 and 2.2 about aligning coverage class paging groups). Forinstance, the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) can perform step 802 byusing a benchmark paging block associated with the lowest CC to identifythe nominal paging group for the lowest CC (CC1) and the additionalnominal paging group associated with a higher CC (i.e., the new CC ofthe wireless device 208) such that the additional nominal paging grouphas a set of paging blocks comprising the benchmark paging block. TheRAN node 204 a typically performs this configuration operation inresponse to receiving a paging request from the CN node 206 and as suchthe new CC refers to the actual DL CC included within the paging request(i.e., the new CC is also known as the DL CC currently stored by the CNnode 206 for the wireless device 208 and comprises the last DL CCinformation provided to the CN node 206 by the wireless device 208). Thewireless device 208 would perform these same steps such that both thewireless device 208 and the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) have thesame configured additional nominal paging group and as a result cancommunicate with one another.

Referring to FIG. 9, there is a block diagram illustrating structures ofan exemplary RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) configured to interactwith the wireless device 208 in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent disclosure. In an embodiment, the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204a) may comprise a configuration module 902. The configuration module 902is configured to configure a nominal paging group for a lowest CC withinan eDRX cycle associated with the wireless device 208 to correlate withan additional nominal paging group associated with a higher CC (i.e.,the new CC of the wireless device 208 within the eDRX cycle (see earlierdiscussion in sections 2.1 and 2.2 about aligning coverage class paginggroups). For instance, the configuration module 902 can accomplish thisby using a benchmark paging block associated with the lowest CC toidentify the nominal paging group for the lowest CC (CC1) and theadditional nominal paging group associated with the higher CC (i.e., thenew CC of the wireless device 208) such that the additional nominalpaging group has a set of paging blocks comprising the benchmark pagingblock. The configuration module 902 typically performs thisconfiguration operation in response to the RAN node 204 a receiving apaging request from the CN node 206 and as such the new CC refers to theactual DL CC included within the paging request (i.e., the new CC isalso known as the DL CC currently stored by the CN node 206 for thewireless device 208 and comprises the last DL CC information provided tothe CN node 206 by the wireless device 208).

As those skilled in the art will appreciate, the above-described module902 of the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) may be implemented asdedicated circuits. Further, the module 902 can also be implementedusing any number of dedicated circuits through functional combination orseparation. In some embodiments, the module 902 may be in a singleapplication specific integrated circuit (ASIC). As an alternativesoftware-based implementation, the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a) maycomprise a memory 212 a, a processor 210 a (including but not limited toa microprocessor, a microcontroller or a Digital Signal Processor (DSP),etc.) and an interface 214 a. The memory 212 a stores machine-readableprogram code executable by the processor 210 a to cause the RAN node 204a (e.g., BSS 204 a) to perform the step of the above-described method800.

Referring to FIG. 10, there is a flowchart of a method 1000 implementedin a CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206) in accordance with an embodiment ofthe present disclosure. At step 1002, the CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206)receives, from the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204 a), an indication thata current DL CC for the wireless device 208 needs to be changed toeither a higher DL CC or a lower DL CC, wherein the indication isassociated with an UL-UNITDATA PDU or a LLC PDU. In one example, theindication is received in an information element within the UL-UNITDATAPDU that is associated with an uplink transmission which is limited to acell update procedure when the current DL CC needs to be changed to thehigher DL CC. Alternatively, the indication is received in a fieldwithin the LLC PDU that is associated with an uplink transmission whichis limited to a cell update procedure when the current DL CC needs to bechanged to the higher DL CC. In another example, the indication isreceived in an information element within the UL-UNITDATA PDU that isassociated with an uplink transmission which is not limited to (i.e.,has another purpose in addition to) a cell update procedure when thecurrent DL CC needs to be changed to the lower DL CC. Alternatively, theindication is received in a field within the LLC PDU that is associatedwith an uplink transmission which is not limited to (i.e., has anotherpurpose in addition to) a cell update procedure when the current DL CCneeds to be changed to the lower DL CC.

Referring to FIG. 11, there is a block diagram illustrating structuresof an exemplary CN node 206 (e.g., SGSN 206) in accordance with anembodiment of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, the CN node 206(e.g., SGSN 206) may comprise a receive module 1102. The receive module1102 is configured to receive, from the RAN node 204 a (e.g., BSS 204a), an indication that a current DL CC for the wireless device 208 needsto be changed to either a higher DL CC or a lower DL CC, wherein theindication is associated with an UL-UNITDATA PDU or a LLC PDU. In oneexample, the indication is received in an information element within theUL-UNITDATA PDU that is associated with an uplink transmission which islimited to a cell update procedure when the current DL CC needs to bechanged to the higher DL CC. Alternatively, the indication is receivedin a field within the LLC PDU that is associated with an uplinktransmission which is limited to a cell update procedure when thecurrent DL CC needs to be changed to the higher DL CC. In anotherexample, the indication is received in an information element within theUL-UNITDATA PDU that is associated with an uplink transmission which isnot limited to (i.e., has another purpose in addition to) a cell updateprocedure when the current DL CC needs to be changed to the lower DL CC.Alternatively, the indication is received in a field within the LLC PDUthat is associated with an uplink transmission which is not limited to(i.e., has another purpose in addition to) a cell update procedure whenthe current DL CC needs to be changed to the lower DL CC.

As those skilled in the art will appreciate, the above-described module1102 of the CN node 206 (e.g., CN node 206) may be implemented asdedicated circuits. Further, the module 1102 can also be implementedusing any number of dedicated circuits through functional combination orseparation. In some embodiments, the module 1102 may be in a singleapplication specific integrated circuit (ASIC). As an alternativesoftware-based implementation, the CN node 206 (e.g., CN node 206) maycomprise a memory 220, a processor 218 (including but not limited to amicroprocessor, a microcontroller or a Digital Signal Processor (DSP),etc.) and an interface 222. The memory 220 stores machine-readableprogram code executable by the processor 218 to cause the CN node 206(e.g., CN node 206) to perform the steps of the above-described method1000.

Certain aspects of the inventive concept have mainly been describedabove with reference to a few embodiments. However, as is readilyappreciated by a person skilled in the art, embodiments other than theones disclosed above are equally possible and within the scope of theinventive concept. Similarly, while a number of different combinationshave been discussed, all possible combinations have not been disclosed.One skilled in the art would appreciate that other combinations existand are within the scope of the inventive concept. Moreover, as isunderstood by the skilled person, the herein disclosed embodiments areas such applicable also to other standards and communication systems andany feature from a particular figure disclosed in connection with otherfeatures may be applicable to any other figure and or combined withdifferent features.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the use of the term“exemplary” is used herein to mean “illustrative,” or “serving as anexample,” and is not intended to imply that a particular embodiment ispreferred over another or that a particular feature is essential.Likewise, the terms “first” and “second,” and similar terms, are usedsimply to distinguish one particular instance of an item or feature fromanother, and do not indicate a particular order or arrangement, unlessthe context clearly indicates otherwise. Further, the term “step,” asused herein, is meant to be synonymous with “operation” or “action.” Anydescription herein of a sequence of steps does not imply that theseoperations must be carried out in a particular order, or even that theseoperations are carried out in any order at all, unless the context orthe details of the described operation clearly indicates otherwise.

Of course, the present disclosure may be carried out in other specificways than those herein set forth without departing from the scope andessential characteristics of the invention. One or more of the specificprocesses discussed above may be carried out in a cellular phone orother communications transceiver comprising one or more appropriatelyconfigured processing circuits, which may in some embodiments beembodied in one or more application-specific integrated circuits(ASICs). In some embodiments, these processing circuits may comprise oneor more microprocessors, microcontrollers, and/or digital signalprocessors programmed with appropriate software and/or firmware to carryout one or more of the operations described above, or variants thereof.In some embodiments, these processing circuits may comprise customizedhardware to carry out one or more of the functions described above. Thepresent embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects asillustrative and not restrictive.

Although multiple embodiments of the present disclosure have beenillustrated in the accompanying Drawings and described in the foregoingDetailed Description, it should be understood that the invention is notlimited to the disclosed embodiments, but instead is also capable ofnumerous rearrangements, modifications and substitutions withoutdeparting from the present disclosure that as has been set forth anddefined within the following claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A wireless device comprising: a processor;and, a memory that stores processor-executable instructions, wherein theprocessor interfaces with the memory to execute the processor-executableinstructions to perform operations to: determine a current downlink (DL)coverage class (CC) needs to be changed to a higher DL CC or a lower DLCC; and, based on the determination of the need to change the current DLCC to the higher DL CC, transmit an indication of the higher DL CC byperforming a cell update procedure.
 2. The wireless device of claim 1,wherein the processor further executes the processor-executableinstructions to transmit the indication of the higher DL CC by using acode point within an access request sent on a Random Access Channel(RACH) requesting uplink (UL) Transport Block Format (TBF) resources tosend a cell update message.
 3. The wireless device of claim 1, whereinthe processor further executes the processor-executable instructions toperform an operation to: based on the determination of the need tochange the current DL CC to the lower DL CC, transmit an indication ofthe lower DL CC in an uplink transmission, wherein the uplinktransmission has another purpose in addition to indicating the lower DLCC, and wherein transmission of the indication of the lower DL CC in theuplink transmission uses a code point within an access request sent on aRandom Access Channel (RACH) requesting uplink (UL) Transport BlockFormat (TBF) resources to send the uplink transmission.
 4. The wirelessdevice of claim 1, wherein the wireless device is further operable to:perform the determine operation and the transmit operation before a nextoccurrence of a nominal paging group.
 5. The wireless device of claim 1,wherein the wireless device is further operable to: based on thedetermination of the need to change the current DL CC to the lower DLCC, not transmit an indication of the lower DL CC.
 6. The wirelessdevice of claim 1, wherein the higher DL CC indicates at least one moreblind repetition is needed than provided by the current DL CC, andwherein the lower DL CC indicates at least one less blind repetition isneeded than provided by the current DL CC.
 7. The wireless device ofclaim 1, wherein the wireless device is further operable to: configure anominal paging group for a lowest CC within an extended DiscontinuousReceive (eDRX) cycle associated with the wireless device to correlatewith an additional nominal paging group associated with a higher CCwithin the eDRX cycle.
 8. The wireless device of claim 7, wherein thewireless device is further operable to perform the configure operationas follows: using a benchmark paging block associated with the lowest CCto identify the nominal paging group for the lowest CC and theadditional nominal paging group such that the additional nominal paginggroup associated with the higher CC has a set of paging blockscomprising the benchmark paging block.
 9. A method implemented by awireless device, the method comprising steps as follows: determining acurrent downlink (DL) coverage class (CC) needs to be changed to ahigher DL CC or a lower DL CC; and, based on the determining of the needto change the current DL CC to the higher DL CC, transmitting anindication of the higher DL CC by performing a cell update procedure.10. The method of claim 9, wherein the step of transmitting theindication of the higher DL CC by performing the cell update procedurefurther comprises using a code point within an access request sent on aRandom Access Channel (RACH) requesting uplink (UL) Transport BlockFormat (TBF) resources to send a cell update message.
 11. The method ofclaim 9, further comprising a step of: based on the determining of theneed to change the current DL CC to the lower DL CC, transmitting anindication of the lower DL CC in an uplink transmission, wherein theuplink transmission has another purpose in addition to indicating thelower DL CC, and wherein the step of transmitting the indication of thelower DL CC in the uplink transmission further comprises a step of usinga code point within an access request sent on a Random Access Channel(RACH) requesting uplink (UL) Transport Block Format (TBF) resources tosend the uplink transmission.
 12. The method of claim 9, wherein thedetermining step and the transmitting step are performed before a nextoccurrence of a nominal paging group.
 13. The method of claim 9, furthercomprising: based on the determination of the need to change the currentDL CC to the lower DL CC, not transmitting an indication of the lower DLCC.
 14. The method of claim 9, wherein the higher DL CC indicates atleast one more blind repetition is needed than provided by the currentDL CC, and wherein the lower DL CC indicates at least one less blindrepetition is needed than provided by the current DL CC.
 15. The methodof claim 9, further comprising: configuring a nominal paging group for alowest CC within an extended Discontinuous Receive (eDRX) cycleassociated with the wireless device to correlate with an additionalnominal paging group associated with a higher CC within the eDRX cycle.16. The method of claim 15, wherein the configuring step furthercomprises: using a benchmark paging block associated with the lowest CCto identify the nominal paging group for the lowest CC and theadditional nominal paging group such that the additional nominal paginggroup associated with the higher CC has a set of paging blockscomprising the benchmark paging block.
 17. A Radio Access Network (RAN)node comprising: a processor; and, a memory that storesprocessor-executable instructions, wherein the processor interfaces withthe memory to execute the processor-executable instructions, whereby theRAN node is operable to: configure a nominal paging group for a lowestcoverage class (CC) within an extended Discontinuous Receive (eDRX)cycle for a wireless device to correlate with an additional nominalpaging group associated with a higher CC within the eDRX cycle for thewireless device.
 18. The RAN node of claim 17, wherein the RAN node isoperable to perform the configure operation as follows: using abenchmark paging block associated with the lowest CC to identify thenominal paging group for the lowest CC and the additional nominal paginggroup such that the additional nominal paging group associated with thehigher CC has a set of paging blocks comprising the benchmark pagingblock.
 19. A method in a Radio Access Network (RAN) node, the methodcomprising: configuring a nominal paging group for a lowest coverageclass (CC) within an extended Discontinuous Receive (eDRX) cycle for awireless device to correlate with an additional nominal paging groupassociated with a higher CC within the eDRX cycle for the wirelessdevice.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the configuration stepfurther comprises: using a benchmark paging block associated with thelowest CC to identify the nominal paging group for the lowest CC and theadditional nominal paging group such that the additional nominal paginggroup associated with the higher CC has a set of paging blockscomprising the benchmark paging block.
 21. A Core Network (CN) nodecomprising: a processor; and, a memory that stores processor-executableinstructions, wherein the processor interfaces with the memory toexecute the processor-executable instructions, whereby the CN node isoperable to: receive, from a Radio Access Network (RAN) node, anindication that a current downlink (DL) coverage class (CC) for thewireless device needs to be changed to either a higher DL CC or a lowerDL CC, wherein the indication is associated with an UL-UNITDATA ProtocolData Unit (PDU).
 22. The CN node of claim 21, wherein the indication isreceived in an information element within the UL-UNITDATA PDU that isassociated with an uplink transmission which is limited to a cell updateprocedure when the current DL CC needs to be changed to the higher DLCC.
 23. The CN node of claim 21, wherein the indication is received inan information element within the UL-UNITDATA PDU that is associatedwith an uplink transmission which has another purpose in addition to acell update procedure when the current DL CC needs to be changed to thelower DL CC.
 24. A method in a Core Network (CN) node, the methodcomprising: receiving, from a Radio Access Network (RAN) node, anindication that a current downlink (DL) coverage class (CC) for thewireless device needs to be changed to either a higher DL CC or a lowerDL CC, wherein the indication is associated with an UL-UNITDATA ProtocolData Unit (PDU).
 25. The method of claim 24, wherein the indication isreceived in an information element within the UL-UNITDATA PDU that isassociated with an uplink transmission which is limited to a cell updateprocedure when the current DL CC needs to be changed to the higher DLCC.
 26. The method of claim 24, wherein the indication is received in aninformation element within the UL-UNITDATA PDU that is associated withan uplink transmission which has another purpose in addition to a cellupdate procedure when the current DL CC needs to be changed to the lowerDL CC.